NOTES. 285 



The dates of the specimens are as follow : — October 5th, 

 1896 ; December 3rd, 1894 ; December 28th, 1899 : January 

 10th, 1897 ; January 22nd, 1895 ; January 25th, 1895 ; 

 February 5th, 1895. 



Dr. Hartert has very kindly confirmed my identification of 

 the specimens. 



H. F. WiTHERBY. 



AMERICAN WATER-PIPIT AT ST. KILDA. 



Mr. W. Eagle Clarke announces {Ann. S.N.H., 1911, p. 52) 

 that during his visit to St. Kilda in the autumn of 1910 (Sep- 

 tember 1st to October 8th) he " met witli quite unlooked-for 

 success." Fifty-four species on passage came under his notice, 

 and of these thirty-five were new to the avifauna of the island. 

 Among them was an example of the American Water- 

 Pipit {Anthus spinoletta rubescens), which Mr. Clarke pro- 

 nounces to be new to the British list. Howard Saunders 

 {Manual, p. 142) rejected previously recorded occurrences, 

 and Professor Newton argues {Yarrell, ed, IV., Vol. I, p. 590. 

 footnote) that Macgillivray's first description {Man. Brit. Birds, 

 p. 169) of specimens obtained in 1824 near Edinburgh refers 

 to A. s. rupestris, while his more elaborate description on 

 pp. 170 and 171 refers to A. s. rubescens {= ludovicianus ; pen- 

 sylvanicus) and that of the female to A. s. rupestris ! 



The bird appears to have been first named by Tunstall 

 {Orn. Brit., p. 2), who called it Alauda rubescens from the 

 Red Lark of Pennant {Brit. Zool. Birds, II., p. 239), who 

 took his description from Edwards {Gleanings, pi. 297), where 

 a bird from Pennsylvania is figured. Edwards said he also 

 found this bird near London. 



In the Check- List of North American Birds (1910, p. 328), 

 the bird is said to breed in the Arctic zone from north-eastern 

 Siberia, northern Alaska, northern Mackenzie, on both sides 

 of Davis Strait south to the Great Slave Lake, northern 

 Quebec and Newfoundland, and from the Aleutian Islands 

 to Prince William Sound, as well as on high mountains 

 south to California and mid Mexico. It winters from the 

 Southern States to Guatemala. 



Two examples are recorded by Giitke from Heligoland, 

 one on November 6th, 1857, and another on May 17th, 1858 

 {Heligoland, p. 344). 



The American Water-Pipit is much like the typical form, 

 but may be distinguished by its larger size, the more tawny 

 colouring of the underparts, and by the penultimate pair of 

 tail-feathers being white to the tip on the outer web. H.F.W. 



